


25 days of Christmas

by Inkognito97



Series: Star Wars [11]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: 2017, Advent Calendar, Bells, Christmas, Christmas Carols, Christmas Decorations, Christmas Tree, Fluff, Knitting, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Padawan Obi-Wan, Qui-Gon is not one for Christmas, Snow, Traditions, Winter, carols, decorations, snow ball fights
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-01
Updated: 2017-12-25
Packaged: 2019-02-09 07:13:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 13,982
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12882780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Inkognito97/pseuds/Inkognito97
Summary: 25 little stories in the Star Wars Universe. One part will be published every day of December. Together, they create one big story.





	1. Tradition

**Author's Note:**

> I do not own Star Wars or any of its character. Star Wars belongs to Disney. I do not make any kind of profit with it.
> 
> Every mistake is my own.  
> Enjoy! ^^

Qui-Gon Jinn had forgotten what it meant to take care of a young Padawan. It had been years since he trained Xanatos and it was even longer since he had trained a young boy, not a teenager or a young man, but a mere boy.

That was also the main reason, why he had not paid much attention to the current season. Granted, he knew it was winter, because it was getting colder and the days were getting darker, but other than that, the seasons were of no real importance to him. Spring, summer, autumn and winter were circling around each other in an endless circle. Nature revived itself during winter, only to reawaken during spring. It had always been like this and it would always be like this. As a Master of the Living Force, he knew that all too well. But as a Master of the Living Force, he also preferred to live in the moment and right now, he was glad to be home. That however, was something that might change very soon.

 

The long haired Jedi Master shot a quick glance towards his merry Padawan. The boy was humming a tune to himself and seemed to be truly happy to be home in time for Christmas holidays. The term ‘holidays’ only meant that the young Jedi were freed from all kinds of lessons, it happened only two times in the year, during the Christmas season and because of Eastern.

Had Qui-Gon known that the boy would be so eager to return for Christmas, he might have considered taking the unpleasant mission Yoda had told him about, but that was too late now. He just had to keep an ear out for any other kind of missions so that he could escape the holly and merry time of the year… as well as the endless traditions…

Christmas was truly a terrible time.


	2. Scrooge

Qui-Gon hated Christmas. Actually he did not hate Christmas specifically, he just hated all the fuss that was made about it. All people pretended to be nice and happy, it was the one time of the year, when families found together again, while the rest of the year, they spoke no word to each other. This charade, it was too much for him.

And not to forget the smell of bakeries, firs, candy and candles that would not leave the temple for weeks. His sensitive nose truly suffered under it. And of course there was the stress of getting presents for all loved ones.

 

“Master,” it was Obi-Wan’s excited and merry voice that brought him out of his brooding thoughts. “Master, do you think we can,” he was cut off, before he cut even finish the sentence.

“No, Obi-Wan, we cannot.” The merry face of the freckled boy immediately fell.

“But Master,” again, he was interrupted by the older Jedi, who had no love for the holiday in his heart, or his mind.

“I don’t like repeating myself, Padawan,” he said in a stern voice. “Now, I think you have training to do and did you not tell me that you had problems in one of your classes? How about you go and study?”

Blue-green eyes blinked in surprise, but it was quickly hidden away again under the perfect mask of a Jedi. “Yes Master,” the ginger haired male bowed and hurried back to their rooms. From the outside, he looked calm and collected, but inside he wondered why his Master seemed so grumpy lately. Had he done something wrong?

Meanwhile Qui-Gon winced inwardly. He might not like Christmas, but he did not need to let it out on Obi-Wan, the boy had nothing to do with it.


	3. Decoration

In delight did Obi-Wan stroll through the countless hallways of the Jedi temple. At such an early hour, it was usually not so busy, but almost everyone was up and about to decorate the many corridors and rooms. It was an old tradition and all Jedi helped each other. Masters were working alongside the youngest Crechelings, Initiates and Knights helped each other and of course not to forget the Padawans. Even the Council members joined in the tradition. The only one, who did not seem interested in joining, was Qui-Gon.

In fact the long haired Jedi was walking a few steps behind his Padawan, watching the boy’s eagerness and shaking his head at children and adults alike, who were trying to engage him into the activity.

 

The long haired male’s midnight blue eyes turned back to his charge and he blinked in surprise, when he noticed that Obi-Wan was not walking in front of him anymore. Instead the boy had walked towards a far corner. He was bending down and picking something up from the floor, but Qui-Gon could not see what it was. Curious, the Jedi Master approached the ginger haired Padawan, only to stop dead in his tracks, when he identified the object in small hands as a Christmas bulb that had undoubtedly fallen of the tree before him. A little lost did Obi-Wan look up at the plant, then his ever changing blue-green eyes turned to the older Jedi, silently pleading.

Qui-Gon sighed inwardly and refrained from rolling his eyes, but he succumbed to his fate and he picked his Padawan up, putting the boy on his shoulders so that he could reach further up. A delighted squeal escaped they boy as he was picked up, but he quickly settled comfortable on the broad shoulders. He could easily reach up now and fasten the Christmas bulb to the fir.

 

He seemed happy again, when Qui-Gon let him slide to the floor and before the Jedi Master could react, did the young male wrap his arms around his bigger frame. The Master blinked in surprise when his student pressed as close as possible with his eyes closed.

In this moment, something inside the tall Jedi Master warmed up and with a gentle look on his bearded features, did he put his hands on smaller shoulders.

Obi-Wan’s eyes opened. He grinned openly and was already pulling back again, but not without taking a firm hold on Qui-Gon’s calloused hand, pulling him after him.

 

Qui-Gon easily ignored the amused and soft looks of his colleagues.


	4. Mistletoe

Obi-Wan maneuvered himself and his Master around cartons and boxes full of decoration equipment. And even though the older male had just helped him, was it clear that Qui-Gon still had no desire to actually help with the decorations, so the Padawan did not even try his luck with his teacher. Instead he would take what he could get and right now, the man was in a good mood, which meant that he would accompany him through the halls. That was certainly better than sparring, though Qui-Gon had planned that for later, and much better than studying.

Usually, Obi-Wan was a faithful and good student, but during the Christmas season, even he wanted and NEEDED a break.

 

“Obi-Wan,” Qui-Gon sounded both amused and also a little bit as if he was suffering, “slow down, would you?”

Blue-green eyes sheepishly looked at the older male. “Sorry Master,” he replied and did indeed slow down. He did not let go of the larger hand however, there was no way that he would let the man escape.

Qui-Gon had already opened his mouth to say something else, when a female voice cut in. “Qui, I can’t believe that you actually came out of that cave of yours.”

Tahl Ya’qul was a very close friend of Qui-Gon. She had honey colored skin and her gold-green striped eyes were very intelligent. She was also the Master of Obi-Wan’s best friend, the Mon Calamari girl, Bant Eerin.

“Very funny,” grumbled the taller Jedi.

“Hello Bant,” Obi-Wan had finally let go of his Master’s hand in order to greet his friend properly. It had been quite a while since the two of them had last seen each other, after all, their Master’s were busy people and quite skilled as well.

“It is good to see you,” Tahl’s teasing had been replaced by a gentle tone. She smiled honestly up at the older male, who looked as if he was not sure, if he should be amused or annoyed.

“Indeed,” he said. The Noorian’s gaze had been caught by something else, but before Qui-Gon could ask, the female leaned close, their faces only inches apart, but the long haired male pulled away sharply. “What in the name of the Force are you doing?” he hissed. It was not like he wanted her to stop, in fact he loved her dearly and he wanted to do nothing more than kiss her, but they were in public and there was no way that he would threaten any of their careers, their Padawans’ included.

The female shot him a disbelieving stare. “I am following traditions, like our Padawans.”

Qui-Gon looked to his side, just in time to see his ginger haired brat place a short kiss on the giggling Mon Calamari’s cheek, before she returned the favor. She was obviously flustered, but at least she did not flush a bright red like Obi-Wan did, who looked truly embarrassed. The Jedi Master furrowed his brow. It seemed he had missed something.

“Qui-Gon,” the oldest female spoke patiently. She positioned two of her slender fingers under the man’s prominent chin and tilted his face up. “It is just a mistletoe,” she chuckled.

“Ah,” he awkwardly cleared his throat. “Well…” he was sure that he was as bright as his Padawan.

Tahl decided to have mercy on her friend. She shook her head, pushed a dreadlock out of her face and then leaned up again, sealing their lips for a few sweet seconds.

 

Dazed blue eyes blinked and their owner’s mouth opened a couple of times, but no words escaped him.

Bant started to giggle loudly and even Obi-Wan chuckled at the sight of a dignified Jedi Master in such a position. Qui-Gon shot them an annoyed look, then his eyes met Tahl’s again and the two older Jedi acted as one. Each of them bolted forward, getting a hold on their Padawans, before pressing a wet kiss in Tahl’s case and a scratchy one in Qui-Gon’s case, on their student’s cheeks. They did not seem to overly mind though, quite the opposite actually, even while Obi-Wan was rubbing his face.

And that was that.


	5. Candles

“I thought you wanted to go out with your friends,” ever since the mistletoe incident, Qui-Gon had warmed up a little to the idea of Christmas. Obi-Wan expected it had something to do with Master Tahl, but he deemed it better not to ask too many questions in that direction. He had the feeling that it was a sensitive topic and that his mentor did not want to talk about it.

“Yeah,” Obi-Wan replied. “But Reeft was called on a mission, Siri is ill, Garen has to help Master Yoda for the rest of the week, because he was caught in a prank and it would be kind of pointless, if it were just Bant and me.”

“I see,” he let himself drop next to his student on the couch. The brown piece of furniture had certainly seen better days, but it also harbored a lot of memories for the long haired Jedi. Besides, it was still very comfortable. “What are you doing?” he watched as Obi-Wan glued another piece on a plate. It looked more like chaos than anything, but then again, it looked as if the Padawan had just started.

“I am making an advent wreath. I heard Master Windu talk about it and even though we are a couple of days too late, I want to make one.”

“I see. Well, as long as you don’t use aromatic candles,” said the long haired male. He closed his eyes and leaned back until his back rested against the backrest, with his arms draped over it. Perhaps he would take a quick nap, Obi-Wan could wake him if he was needed.

“Don’t worry Master, I don’t really like them either,” at least something they had in common.

 

Qui-Gon was startled awake to the sound of something clattering to the ground. He abruptly sat straight, but upon not sensing any danger, just Obi-Wan and from their steadily growing fledgling bond he could feel that the boy way fine, he relaxed again. His gaze came to rest on the table. He partly expected to be greeted by even more chaos, but he was surprised to see a beautifully made advent wreath in front of him. The colors were a simple beige-green, combination with a few silver aspects, but it looked good. The only thing that was still missing, were the candles.

Qui-Gon huffed. He was not one for such things, but he had to admit it to his Padawan, the boy had talent. Speaking of which, the ginger haired Jedi in training just entered the living room, carrying a couple of white candles in his arms.

“I’m sorry for waking you, Master,” he sounded genuinely sorry.

“Don’t worry about it,” he stretched and yawned. Obi-Wan sent a relieved smile his way, before he turned back to his almost finished project.

 

The candles were quickly added and not a moment later, the first light flickered to life, illuminating both the low table, as well as the old couch in a warm light. Obi-Wan was pleased with himself.

“It is very beautiful, Padawan,” he just wondered if the strange leaves he saw peeking out from between fir-green, were from his plants. Then again, what did a couple of leaves matter?


	6. Boots

“What in the name of the Force are you doing there, Obi-Wan?” by now he was used to his Padawan acting strangely, but somewhere he had to draw a line.

Obi-Wan stopped dead in his tracks. He turned to grin up at his long haired Jedi Master, with the said man’s boots in his hands and shoe polish sticking out of his pant pocket. “I am going to place your boots out the door of course,” he said it, as if it were the most obvious thing in the galaxy.

“Why would you want to do that?” he crossed his arms over his chest.

“It’s a tradition, Master. You have to put your boots outside the door this night and Master Nicholas will bring you a present.”

Qui-Gon was starting to remember what this strange tradition was about. He was about to tell his Padawan that Master Nicholas was dead since eons, even though his memory remained, but the eager blue-green eyes of the boy stopped him. It would not hurt the boy to keep a few childish thoughts, not until he was much older that is.

“Shouldn’t you be putting your boots out then?” he asked instead.

“I already did that, but then I thought that perhaps you will get a present too,” he shrugged.

Obi-Wan was cute, there was just no other word for it. “I fear that only children will be visited by Master Nicholas,” said Qui-Gon.

“Oh?” the boy had tilted his head, a sad expression appearing on his features. But he quickly caught himself again. “Well, at least you have clean boots now,” he laughed and was already on the move again, putting his master’s boots back to where they belonged. “I’m off now, Master. Bant invited me over.”

“Alright, don’t be home late,” he called after the boy.

 

A sigh escaped the Jedi master as he saw that his Padawan was running on socks. He had holidays, it could be excused. Qui-Gon shrugged, but then his eyes went wide in realization. His Padawan expected Master Nicholas, one of the kindest and most gracious men ever to wander the halls of the Jedi temple, to actually come this night. He groaned. Perhaps he could call Mace for the job, he himself was none too eager to wake up in the middle of the night to put some sweets into the ginger haired Padawan’s boots. But something deep inside Qui-Gon told him that it would indeed turn out to be him, who would wake up in the middle of the night.


	7. Carols

Qui-Gon Jinn was annoyed. There was not one place in the entire temple, where no one was singing one of those ridiculous and sappy carols. It was truly maddening. At first, he had wanted to spar, but the singing Padawans had distracted him, causing Mace to win after at least fifteen times of loosing. Needless to say, it had been humiliating and just terrible.

Afterwards, the long haired Jedi had intended to meditate, to get some steam out of his system and to get some calmness. He had perhaps managed to meditate for thirty minutes, before the happily and joyfully group of singers, had stepped into the garden. His peace and calmness had been ruined at this point and the only place in the temple he deemed safe and carol-free, where his own rooms. It was a pity actually, for he had wanted to spend some time outside his quarters. It couldn’t be helped.

 

But now that he was sitting on his comfortable couch, watching the news with a steaming cup of his favorite tea in his hands, everything was alright again. At least it was, until his door opened and a certain ginger haired Padawan entered, singing Qui-Gon’s least favorite Christmas song.

 

“Hello Master,” the boy greeted good naturedly and went into the kitchen.

The Jedi Master in question took a few deep breaths, trying his hardest to ignore the hummed tune, but failing miserable. Perhaps if he got the boy to talk… “How was your day, Padawan?”

“It was awesome, even when Garen kept on changing the lyrics from the carols… it was not always appropriate,” he chuckled and even Qui-Gon had to smile at that. He could remember Mace doing the same when they were still young Padawans themselves.

“As long as you had fun,” he said. Silence settled between the pair. This was the problem, if you spent most of the time together, you eventually ran out of things you could discuss.

It didn’t take long for Obi-Wan to resume humming.

The brown haired Master closed his eyes. Of all the carols the boy could have chosen, it had to be THIS one…

“Obi-Wan, PLEASE, stop singing. I can’t take it anymore,” he eventually said.

He felt surprise and an unhealthy amount of hurt over their bond. Qui-Gon silently cursed. This had not been his intention, he had just wanted his student to either change tune, or to stop while in his company. He should have known that his Padawan would take it the wrong way, the boy had the tendency to put the blame on himself. It was something they truly needed to work on.

“This is not how I meant,” but the older male did not come further, he was interrupted by Obi-Wan.

“Don’t worry, it’s alright, Master.” But it wasn’t, Qui-Gon could feel it. Yet before he could react any further, had Obi-Wan fled out of their apartment. This was certainly one way to ruin a day…


	8. Light

Obi-Wan had not returned for the rest of the day and it was only after Qui-Gon had left – fully knowing that his Padawan would not return with him occupying their quarters – that he had returned. Only after he was certain that the ginger haired boy had returned and fallen asleep, Qui-Gon come back as well.

Qui-Gon was standing in the doorway to his Padawan’s bedroom. The boy was indeed deeply asleep. A sigh escaped the older Jedi, he would make it up to Obi-Wan, he had to. Silently, so that he would not wake the ginger haired boy, he closed the door and went to his own bed, intending to find some sleep. Tomorrow would be a new day.

 

The long haired Jedi was relieved to see his Padawan at the breakfast table. He had already feared that the boy would have left before he had a chance to speak to him.

“Obi-Wan,” he began to speak, “I trust you slept well.”  
Ever changing blue-green eyes turned to look up. There was still that distance in them. “I did,” he replied somewhat hesitantly.

Qui-Gon nodded. “I had hoped,” he awkwardly cleared his throat while seating himself across from the cereal eating boy, “that you would accompany me to the temple garden this evening.”

It was part of the Jedi tradition. The large tree that stood in the middle of the great garden, would be decorated for days and on the last of those days, a large glowing light in form of a star would be placed on its crown. Every year, a hand full of Jedi Masters with their Padawans were selected to help levitate the great star on top of the tree and this year, Qui-Gon had been one of the few selected. His first impulse had been to deny the activity, but something had held him back. Now, the long haired Jedi Master was thankful for the Force’s interference.

“And I was wondering, if you would like to assist me in lifting the great star…” he let the sentence trail of.

Blue-green eyes widened. “Master?” he asked and even though he did not say more, the older Jedi understood the unvoiced questions nevertheless.

“Yes, Obi-Wan,” as soon as the affirmation had left his mouth, he found himself with a lap full of Padawan.

“Thank you,” was whispered right into his ear and Qui-Gon engulfed the smaller male into a tight hug, glad that he was forgiven. His Padawan had truly a great heart.


	9. Bells

Qui-Gon Jinn was comfortable sitting on his meditation mat in front of his collection of exotic plants. He was still tired from the effort it had taken to lift star on top of the great tree. His Padawan had not fared that much better than him, but the boy had been the last of his peers to stand and help. Why the Council did not chose more Masters and Knights to help, was a puzzle to Qui-Gon, one he had no desire to solve. He had the feeling that it would end in hours of endless history lesson and he certainly had enough of those to last for at least two lifetimes.

 

The tinkling of small bells brought him back into the here and now and confused, did the tall Jedi Master turn around, just in time to see his ginger haired brat enter. Obi-Wan was wearing one of his trademark smirks, it couldn’t be good.

“What have you planned now, Padawan of mine?” teased the older male.

“Me? Whatever do you mean?” laughed the boy and he sunk to his knees in front of his Master, holding out the source of the tinkling.

Midnight blue eyes blinked and a surprised expression washed over bearded features. “I am not sure I understand,” he said slowly.

The grin only grew bigger. “Your hair is a mess, Master. May I?”

Slightly startled by the sudden change of topic, Qui-Gon waved his Padawan ahead. He watched as the boy got up and settled behind him on his knees, setting to work by pulling the hair tie out first. “Will you tell me now, why you are carrying bells with you? If you are afraid that I won’t find you otherwise, I can reassure you,” he joked.

Obi-Wan made a thoughtful noise, while he got knots and tangles out of the hair with his fingers. “You can never be too sure, Master.”

“I could put a leash on you…” Qui-Gon suggested. It earned him a somehow harder tug and while it hurt just a little bit, it did nothing to dampen his amusement.

Obi-Wan mumbled something about ‘Jedi Masters and ridiculous ideas’, when he finished redoing the braid. He looked at his work and in satisfaction, he happily exclaimed, “Done!”

Qui-Gon turned his head to look over his shoulder, only to freeze, when the tinkling began. Furrowing his brows, the long haired Jedi moved his head again, only to receive the same result. It did not need a genius to figure out what his Padawan had done.

“Obi-Wan…,” he had no idea what to say.

Chuckling, the ginger haired Padawan moved so that he was sitting in front of him again. “See it as a precaution, so that you won’t startle anyone by suddenly appearing behind them.”  
“That was ONE time,” he was definitely NOT pouting.

“Yes, but this ‘one time’,” he drawled out the two words, “nearly caused the mission to fail.”

Qui-Gon mentally submitted to the idea of running around tinkling and jingling for the rest of the Christmas time and he was already preparing for the laughter and teasing of his voice, but if it made his Padawan happy... he would make sure that he was not the only one, wearing little bells however.

Before Obi-Wan could as much as blink, had his Master pinned him down. The bells jingled loud in protest, but Qui-Gon ignored them for now. He took one of the remaining items out of his startled student’s hand and with quickness and profession did he redo the Padawan braid, but not without adding one bell at the end.

Curious and amused blue-green eyes looked down at the latest addition to his braid. He looked truly happy in this moment and Qui-Gon could not help but return the bright smile that had appeared on freckled features.


	10. Harmony

Qui-Gon awoke with a groan and a slightly aching back. It took him a moment to realize whys that was the fact, but then he remembered the previous evening that he had spent in company of his Padawan. They had played a few board games, a luxury they did not have often. Obi-Wan had won most of the time, even without Qui-Gon’s help in that direction.

Another groan escaped the older Jedi. He just wished that he had not fallen asleep on the ground, where they had played. His poor back, he was too old to sleep on the ground for long. It was already bad enough during missions, he didn’t need that unpleasantness at home as well.

Something shifted slightly on top of him and that something murmured incoherent things. Slowly, Qui-Gon blinked his eyes open, only to be greeted by the sight of his sleeping Padawan. At least one of them was comfortable.

The long haired Jedi Master was just contemplating if he should move and risk waking Obi-Wan, when the boy began to stir all on his own. Fondly watched the older Jedi as his charge cuddled closer to him, before opening his blue-green eyes with a huge yawn.

“Good morning, Obi-Wan,” he greeted the sleepy boy gently.

“Morning,” mumbled the Padawan, his voice heavy with accent.”Just five more minutes… please?” he asked.

“By all means, Obi-Wan,” Qui-Gon chuckled and watched how the younger male actually closed his eyes again.

“I’ve just got one question, Master… why are you in my bed… not that I mind?” the last part was hastily added.

“I didn’t know that you made it a habit to sleep on the floor, sleepy Padawan of mine.”

“Floor?” Obi-Wan’s brows furrowed and he reopened his eyes once more, only to push himself up this time. His confusion soon turned to understanding. It was amusing to watch freckled cheeks redden in embarrassment.

The older male quickly changed the topic to spare his charge from further embarrassment. “If I remember correctly, then today is a special day…” Obi-Wan tilted his head in confusion. “I think it has something to do with lighting up two candles.”

A grin appeared on the boy’s features. He jumped up from his position on the floor and ran right into the kitchen, where a certain advent wreath was sitting on the table. One of the four red candles was smaller than the rest. And now that the second candle would be lit, it was a clear sign that Christmas was quickly approaching.

“Master?” sounded Obi-Wan’s voice from the kitchen. “Where have you put the matches?”

“Have you looked into the cupboard over the fridge?” Qui-Gon called right back.

The sound of a chair scraping on the floor could be heard, followed by someone rummaging through said cupboard. “Found them!”

Silently, the long haired male smiled to himself. It was truly astonishing how easy Obi-Wan could be made happy…


	11. Scarf

The tune Qui-Gon was humming to himself, was joyful and could be interpreted as a winter song. It was no carol though, the long haired Jedi had quite enough of those, to last him a life time. It had been years since he last knitted something, the happier was the Jedi Master to find out, that he was still as skilled as back then.

He could still remember his own Master’s skepticism and Mace’s laughter. They all had thought him not capable of such lacy work, but their comments had made him even more determine to learn and master it. And in the end, he had proved them wrong. Despite his blunt fingers, he had mastered the art of knitting, at least to a certain degree. And while his fellow agemates had taken drawing or reading as ways to occupy time and relax, he had chosen knitting.

 

“What are you doing, Master?” and here was his ever curious Padawan, fresh out of the fresher, smelling of soap and shampoo.

“What does it look like?” he asked in return.

The freshly cleaned boy sat next to his teacher. “You are knitting,” observant as ever. “But what ARE you knitting?”

His student was persistent, Qui-Gon had to give him that. He held out the beginnings of a fluffy scarf, for Obi-Wan to examine. The wool he had chosen, was blue and green. He would have gone for red, but this was the only wool he had found in his boxes that somehow suited the boy.

“For whom is it?” the boy asked eagerly. He was carefully petting the fabric, in total awe.

“I thought about giving it to a certain young man, who keeps getting into way too much trouble for one his age. Have you any idea, to whom I am referring?” he asked, the bells in his hair jingling happily as he tilted his head.

Obi-Wan smiled sheepishly up at him. “No idea whatsoever, my dear Master.”

Qui-Gon huffed at the endearment. “No? Well, the boy is stubborn, reckless, loyal to a fault and has a way of working his way into old and bitter men’s hearts.”

“Still nothing,” the boy shrugged, and even though his face showed regret, his eyes betrayed him. There was shy pleasure hidden in them.

Qui-Gon was not able to hide his smile. “No? A pity, he is truly a very intelligent and skilled student. I am sure that one day, when he learns to keep his wit and sarcasm in check, he will become a great diplomat and Jedi.”

The ginger haired male ducked his head, yet the older Jedi was still able to see the blush creeping up his charge’s neck. Also, he could feel his student’s embarrassment over their bond, it was truly endearing.

“I am sure he will appreciate your gift… and he will undoubtedly be very grateful.”

Qui-Gon hummed and carefully reached out with one of his hands to ruffle through unruly ginger locks that were still damp from the shower the Padawan had taken. “I better hurry then.” And if Obi-Wan ran to his room, only to reemerge with his little ocarina in hands, in order to play a few Christmas carols, then Qui-Gon did not say anything. Not even, when a couple of times, a wrong note was hit.


	12. Snow

Qui-Gon was roughly pulled from sweet dreams, they had included Tahl and Obi-Wan and a little home one a nature planet, far away from war and conflicts, by said Padawan literally jumping onto his bed.

“Master!” exclaimed the Padawan, much too awake and much too loud for the older male’s liking. “Master, wake up!”

A groan escaped the older Jedi and he wondered if the boy had a snoozing button… probably not. “Obi-Wan, have you any idea, what time it is?” he asked instead.

“No,” at least he was honest, “but Master, it’s snowing… on Coruscant.”  
Qui-Gon was suddenly wide awake, what could very well have been due to the weight that suddenly dropped onto his chest. He coughed. “What?”

“It. Is. Snowing.” replied Obi-Wan, very slowly.

Gripping the boy’s waist so that he would not jump up and down on his chest - his poor ribs - he slowly sat up. With a wave of his hand, the curtains were opened and indeed, a few snowflakes that were falling from the sky, could be seen. “Indeed.” Coruscant was a planet on which the weather was controlled. Of course there were a couple of rare occasions, like today, where the systems did not work properly. Snow was not well liked in the lively city planet, at least not by the adults. The children probably thought a lot differently, at least if his Padawan was any indicator.

“Master, please,” he begged sweetly and he was wearing his ‘beaten puppy look’, as Qui-Gon secretly called it. “Can I go out with my friends to play?”

‘Out’ actually meant the Room of a Thousand Fountains or one of the countless gardens. The gardeners were all very strict with their tasks and their gardens, but on days like this, they gladly opened the roof to let snow inside. But ‘out’ could also mean the stairs and court right before the temple’s entrance.

“Alright, BUT,” he quickly said, because his student had almost ran straight out of the bedroom. “At first, I want you to eat something and I want you to eat properly. There is no need to forget table manners, just because it is snowing. Further, I want you to dress in warm clothes, take gloves, your thick boots and winter hat, alright?” It was a pity that he had yet to finish the scarf. It would not take long now, but it wouldn’t be ready today.

“Yes Master,” Obi-Wan’s smile was contagious, especially when he threw his small arms around the older male’s bigger frame. Qui-Gon smiled down softly at his boy, before the ginger haired whirlwind was already gone again.

With a sigh, did the Jedi Master let himself drop back into the pillows, if he was lucky, he might get another hour or two of sleep. Then, he might consider joining his mischievous student. But for now, sleep sounded like a much better idea.

 

When Qui-Gon finally stepped into the white beauty, all hell had already broken lose. He was not the only Jedi Master, who had left the warm comfort of the Jedi temple, in order to occupy his student. In fact, he had just spotted Tahl and Mace, when a snowball hit him right into the face. He did not need to guess long, to know who had thrown it.

“Alright,” he spit out, after having wiped off his face, “this is war!” His midnight blue eyes connected with happy blue-green ones.

“Masters against Padawans,” called somebody, Qui-Gon thought it might have been Garen, one of Obi-Wan’s friends, but he did not have much time to think about it, because he stood at a very bad spot. Running, he tried to get to safety and he only stopped, when he had reached Tahl’s and Mace’s side.

The three friends exchanged looks. “We are not going to live through this, are we?” asked Mace, who ducked just in time to not get hit.

“Most likely not,” replied Qui-Gon happily.

“Less talking, more firing,” commanded Tahl, also laughing. Again, Mace and Qui-Gon exchanged a look, and then they did their best to help their female friend. It was relative hard to say, who had more fun, the Padawans or the Masters…


	13. Cold

In pity did Qui-Gon look down at the miserable bundle of blankets that was actually his Padawan. A cold was making its way throughout the whole temple and it had finally caught up to his boy. It was actual no wonder, not after an eventful day spent in the snow.

 

It was not a serious illness, but it caused a lot of distress for the person, who caught it.

“My poor boy,” he cooed gently and wrapped the blanket tighter around shivering shoulders. A pair of blue green eyes looked up at him, pleading him to do something to make it better.

Qui-Gon sat down next to his student and he was not surprised, when the boy cuddled into him. The older male sighed. Thankfully he was too stubborn to get sick, those were Tahl’s words and not his, so he allowed it.

He began to hum soft tunes, everything that his mind came up with and eventually, he felt the Padawan’s body relax. It was then that the tall male picked up the shivering boy and carried him into his own bed. He had heard that being near familiar objects or smells, would help the feverish mind to calm down. At this point, he would do anything to make Obi-Wan feel better.

The boy was quickly tucked in and Qui-Gon – even though he could not believe it himself – let Christmas music play, very quiet. It was a gentle background noise and then, he sat at the ginger haired Padawan’s side, staying until he had fallen asleep. If he used a sleeping suggestion to help Obi-Wan, then it was his right as the boy’s teacher.

 

As if in trance, did the long haired Jedi Master stroke through ginger curls, encountering the bell that Obi-Wan was wearing, before he got up and headed to the kitchen. Tahl had advised him to cook an easy soup, that would both calm Obi-Wan’s unsettled stomach, as well as give him fluids and vitamins, minerals, etc. Now, he was no good cook, but he would manage… somehow.

“Well, what would a winter season be, without any form of illness?” Qui-Gon mumbled to himself.


	14. Story

Qui-Gon had no idea, how it had come to this, but at some point during the day, his meditation in one of the mostly abandoned gardens had been utterly interrupted. At first, it just had been his Padawan and the boy’s best friend, a female Mon Calamari girl named Bant.

Their excited chattering had not bothered him overly much, he was a trained Jedi Master after all, but more and more of Obi-Wan’s friends had appeared and seated themselves around him. In the end, Qui-Gon found himself surrounded by six little Jedi in training, four boys and two girls and they all were looking at him eagerly.

“Hello Master,” Obi-Wan, who was in the last phase of his recovery from his sickness, chuckled at the bearded male’s stunned expression.

“Obi-Wan,” he managed to say, despite his wariness. “Is something the matter?” He tried to keep an eye on all Padawans, but especially his own and the one with the yellow stripe over the nose. If he remembered correctly, then this was Quinlan Vos, a real troublemaker.

“Not at all, Master,” his grin only grew.

“Then by all means, what can I do for you?” Qui-Gon asked, though he was still unsure about the strange situation.

“Could you tell us a story, please?” it was sweet and innocent little Bant, who had asked. It was no wonder that she and Obi-Wan got along so well.

“Yes, something with excitement,” demanded Quinlan and Garen was nodding eagerly.

“But it needs to have a happy end,” said Reeft, who was nibbling on some kind of fruit.

“A mission from your Padawan days,” suggested Siri and the other Padawan nodded approvingly at that idea. “Tell us about a mission you had.”

Qui-Gon blinked. He had expected a lot of things, mostly a more or less harmless prank or a ‘pouncing attack’, but this was new.

“Master? Please?” and how could Qui-Gon withstand the pleading blue-green eyes of his own student?

“Very well,” sighed the long haired man, before he settled back against a large rock. The children immediately formed a circle around him and Obi-Wan was sitting to his right, almost touching him. “Then listen carefully. It was my first mission as Yan Dooku’s Padawan and we were travelling to…”


	15. Sweater

Obi-Wan was eyeing the strange package on the table with great interest. He was curious by nature and it intrigued him to know what was inside the brown box.

Qui-Gon, who was standing in the doorway behind his Padawan, smiled amused at his student. It did not surprise him that the boy was curious, all children were at this age. The long haired man contemplated, if he should remain silent and watch the spectacle for a few more minutes, when Obi-Wan slumped back in his chair with a sigh. Deciding that his poor Padawan had suffered enough from his insatiable curiosity, he took mercy and made his presence known, by clearing his throat.

Obi-Wan immediately turned around on his chair in surprise, before his eyes met midnight blue ones. “Master,” he exclaimed happily and before Qui-Gon knew it, he was engulfed in a tight hug. A little perplexed, he found himself looking in ever changing blue-green eyes.

“Hello Obi-Wan,” he replied. “What has put you into such a good mood?” Of course he knew the answer to that question.

“We’ve got a package, it’s from Master Dooku,” Obi-Wan’s grin grew wider. He had no idea who Yan Dooku was, except that the man was his Grandmaster, but that did not seem to bother the ginger haired boy, quite the opposite in fact.

“It seems so,” Qui-Gon’s gaze turned towards the brown object on the table.”Why don’t you open it?”

“Yes!” with that the younger male pulled away. The box stood no chance and only moments later, Obi-Wan was standing with a sweater in his hands. It looked hand crafted and it was dark blue, with a lot of white patterns on it.

The Jedi Master had detected a card and read it out loud,

_“Dear Qui-Gon,_

_I trust that you are well and that your Padawan has recovered from his illness. I can gladly say that I got your invitation and that I will return to the temple shortly._

_Until then, Yan Dooku._

_P.s. I hope that your Padawan finds a use for this and that it keeps him from getting sick a second time.”_

“That’s for me?” asked the young male after his teacher had finished. Qui-Gon did not need to look, to know that his old Master had just wormed his way into his Padawan’s heart. It was easy to please the bright and happy boy and even though it was technically a good trait in him, he needed to learn restraint. Trust and love was good, but you have to be able to tell the ‘good’ people apart from the ‘bad’ ones.

“Well, I would have to try it to be absolutely certain, but I think it is not going to fit me, Padawan mine,” Qui-Gon teased lightly. It earned him an amused look from the Padawan, who wasted not another second and put on the warm and fluffy looking sweater. It was a little bit too big for him, but he would undoubtedly grow into it.

“Well?” Obi-Wan held out his arms and slowly turned around, presenting himself to the taller man.

“It suits you,” he jumped forward, pulling the boy into another hug, “and you are fluffy,” he laughed, soon joined by his charge.


	16. Sleigh

Half of Coruscant must be hating the people, who are responsible for the climate control by now, mused Qui-Gon, as he waded through the snow that reached his knee. He was aware of his Padawan, who was humming happily and walking in his footsteps, quite literally, while dragging a wooden sleigh behind him. He had no idea, where the boy had got the sleigh, but Qui-Gon did not care right now.

A lot of Padawans had decided to take advantage of the unusual situation and those who had been able to talk their Master’s into getting out into the cold with them, would be outside, enjoying the time. And apparently Obi-Wan had planned on sledging with his friends.

Qui-Gon just wished that he had not lost the draw for matches with the other Padawans’ Masters. It was not like he did not want to spent time with Obi-Wan and his friends, he actually enjoyed their youthfulness, but he despised the cold.

“Master!” a voice called from behind him and the tall male stopped to turn around. “You have to make smaller steps,” complained the ginger haired Padawan, who was obviously struggling against the snow.

Qui-Gon chuckled and was about to give a fitting retort, when the boy slipped and fell into the snow. He kept lying on the white masses and the long haired male almost believed that the boy had hurt himself, when his Padawan’s arms and legs began to move.

“A snow angel, Obi-Wan?” he slowly walked back and crouched in front of the boy.

“The opportunity presented itself,” replied the freckled boy cheekily, while he got back to his feet. He looked upon his craft and nodded in satisfaction, before turning back to his mentor.

Qui-Gon however, had become pensive. It was still some distance to the park they were heading, one with ramps and even little hills, so he turned his back to the young Jedi in training, still crouching. “Hop on,” he said.

Obi-Wan’s delight and shy pleasure was palpable in the Force and not a moment later, he scrambled onto the broad back. And if Qui-Gon enjoyed the small body warming his back, than that was his right, especially since it was now him, who had to drag the sleigh.

 

Qui-Gon became uncomfortably aware of the stares he was receiving from the few locals he and his Padawan encountered. Most of them were shooting him amused or gentle looks. There had actually been a couple of woman, mothers from the looks of it, who had pointed at him and giggled. He had promptly looked away, as their gazes had met.

 

Finally at the park, Qui-Gon let his charge down, though he regretted it as soon as he was greeted by cold air and watched, how his Padawan ran over to his friends. They greeted each other merrily and the long haired male found himself watching the hug Obi-Wan gave his Mon Calamari friend quite fondly and it became even more fondly, when Obi-Wan seemingly decided to spent all their time outside, with shy Bant, who in turn was delighted at the sledding. His Padawan had truly a heart of gold.


	17. Frosty

Qui-Gon Jinn was awoken from his light doze, by the dipping of his mattress and the shuffling of his blanket. He opened one eye to peek at the intruder, who moved close to him, not yet touching.

“Obi-Wan, what’s the matter?” he asked sleepily.

His Padawan froze in what he was doing. He had clearly not wanted to wake his Master and had therefore been extremely silent and careful, from his point of view that is.

“Sorry Master,” replied the Padawan, “but it’s so cold.”

That made the bearded man frown. He pushed himself slightly up and noticed, that his Padawan was right. Where his blanket had fallen down, he could feel the cold air hitting him. It only caused to deepen the frown on his features. And while the Padawan huddled himself more into the blanket, Qui-Gon reached out with his hand to activate his blinking comlink.

“Good morning, fellow Jedi,” it was Mace Windu’s voice, that spoke. It was clearly a recording. “Due to problems that have started last night, is our heating system in maintenance. We wish to apologize for the unpleasantness and hope that the reparation won’t take long. Until then, you have to count on heaters not functioning, as well as cold water. Try to be patient.” With that, the recording stopped.

He put the comlink back on his nightstand again and his midnight blue eyes turned to look at the Padawan, who was watching him like a lost aak puppy. “Well, I say we stay in bed a little longer.” In truth, he was still tired from yesterday, when he had spent most of the day outside, watching a hand full of overly excited Padawans.

Obi-Wan nodded eagerly and watched sleepily, he had just woken up too after all, how his Master settled down again. He watched a little unsure, until the ever observant man wrapped an arm around him, pulling him close so that he was chest to chest with the long haired male. The ginger haired Padawan smiled to himself and shuffled as close as possible, but he startled, when his Master flinched almost violently. Asking blue green eyes looked up.

“You’ve got cold feet, dear Padawan mine,” said the deep baritone voice amused.

“Sorry,” replied the owner of those cold feet sheepishly and he moved a little so that his feet were not touching Qui-Gon’s bare ones anymore, instead his clothed legs. Also, it gave him the opportunity to hide his face in a warm shoulder and he would certainly not complain about the changed position.

“Now, let us hope that they got the problem back under control by the time we actually stand up,” continued the deep voice. “I have no desire of an ice cold shower.”

Obi-Wan shivered at the mere thought. Of course they had bathed in ice cold water during one mission or the other, but it was only when there was no alternative. It had not been pleasant, not at all. “Master,” complained the Padawan, “don’t speak of such things, please.”

A rich chuckle sounded somewhere above him. “Don’t worry, little one. I am sure everything will be fixed and if not… I am sure that Dex would allow us to his fresher.”  
Obi-Wan was not sure if that was actually an improvement. He liked the tall Besalisk, there was no doubt about it, but the male being’s definition of hygiene was somehow different from Obi-Wan’s. “Or we stay the rest of the day in bed and call it a lazy day?” he asked hopefully.

He just knew his Master was smirking, even though he could not see it. “We’ll see,” he promised. And when the bearded man tightened his arms around the smaller body, it was clear that the conversation was over, at least for now. Obi-Wan did not mind. Instead he enjoyed that his Master was apparently a living heater on legs.

He just remembered that it was time to light the third candle on his advent wreath, but as soon as that thought had crossed his mind, it was gone again. There was no way he would leave the comfortable warmth anytime soon.


	18. Cookies

“Now, now Qui-Gon, there is no need to look so glum,” Mace Windu was beyond amused and it had – for once – nothing to do with the little bell in the taller male’s hair.

“Oh shut up you,” growled Qui-Gon. “If it was your kitchen that will soon turn into a battle field of bakery, you would be ‘glum’ too.”

The dark skinned female, who had been silently laughing up until now, snorted loudly. “We are going to help you clean it up,” she promised.

“You said that the last time as well,” Qui-Gon sighed and let the sentence trail off. It would do him no good to argue with his two friends. They had arranged the Christmas baking and Obi-Wan and Bant were talking of nothing else the last few days and now there was no going back. Force, they had even asked Mace to help, since the Korun Master knew one or two things about baking.

Speaking of the Padawans, a certain ginger haired human male just came running into the kitchen. He was wearing an old tunic, that was just a little bit too small for him and of course there was that little silver bell jingling in his Padawan braid.

“Washed your hands?” asked Qui-Gon fondly.

“Yes Master,” nodded the boy eagerly. Tahl and Mace were meanwhile exchanging amused looks behind the tall man’s back.

“Let me see,” demanded Qui-Gon kindly and Obi-Wan dutifully held up both his hands.

The long haired man smirked evilly and before any of the present Jedi could react, Obi-Wan found himself covered in flour.

“I think, you need to do a better job at washing up.” He grinned. “See it as my revenge for the snow you put in the back of my tunic, young man.”

“I thought Jedi are not supposed to follow the path of revenge, Master,” the Jedi in training was not amused, not at all and it did not help that his Master’s best friends were laughing at him.

“Then see it as a lesson in humility, insolent brat of mine,” he turned back to the giggling Masters, “I think somebody said something about making cookies…”

He did not notice when Bant joined her friend’s side and the two quietly planned their revenge, which turned out to be a certain long haired Jedi Master, who was covered in dough and other substances and was therefore in desperate need of a bath. The state of his kitchen was just as bad and before he could so much as declare their little ‘fun activity’ as finished, Obi-Wan had vanished into the fresher.

“That Padawan of yours is certainly a little devil,” commented Mace, who picked some dough out of his friend’s hair.

 “Yeah,” agreed Qui-Gon, “isn’t that great?” his tone was happy.

The Korun Master huffed, but then shrugged. “Whatever you say.”

Meanwhile Tahl and Bant were putting the last baking sheets into the stove. They just needed to clean up now, though that would undoubtedly be the worst part of the work and of course they would need to keep an eye on the cookies.

It was only after Obi-Wan had reemerged from the fresher – he had even left some warm water for his still dirty Master – that they sat down in Qui-Gon’s living room, content and happy with what they achieved.

“Let us all agree,” Qui-Gon began, as he entered his own living room, wiping his wet hair dry, “not to do that again anytime soon.” Of course it had been fun, especially the part, when he and the Padawan’s had declared a food fight, but he didn’t need to have such a mess in his quarters anytime soon again. “Thank you,” he mumbled as Obi-Wan held out a finished and still warm cookie for his Master, with an apologetic smile on his freckled features. The long haired male just ruffled the unruly ginger locks in affection. Life would indeed be much less sweet and much more boring, without his dear Padawan.


	19. Tree

“No Master, more to the right… a little more… more… YES, that’s perfect.”

Despite the situation, was Qui-Gon smiling broadly. At first he had wanted to strangle the green troll, who had apparently decided that his and Obi-Wan’s quarters needed a Christmas tree and had therefore sent one along with lots of decorations. It had been a hard negotiation between him and his stubborn Padawan and Obi-Wan had won due to unfair methods. Padawan’s should be forbidden to be so adorable and have puppy eyes.

“How about this?” the long haired Jedi asked, holding a Christmas ball high. Obi-Wan, who was not tall enough to help much, was seated on the nearby couch and giving directions.

“Yes,” he agreed happily.

It was hard to say, who had more fun while decorating, the tall Master, who had to do most of the work, or the Padawan, who could finally tell his teacher what to do.

“Master… perhaps it would be better, if we don’t give our best,” Obi-Wan began to philosophize.

“And why not, my wise Padawan?”  
“Because Master Yoda will undoubtedly force us to decorate all the other trees he has surely spread throughout the whole temple,” the ginger haired Jedi chuckled and stood up from his position on the couch to hand his Master the small star he had fixed.

“Oh dear,” he did not take the offered star, instead he picked up his small Padawan and helped him to put it onto the green crown. Obi-Wan’s smile was all the thanks he needed. “You are right… OR we make sure he does not see what we achieved, until it is too late.” Qui-Gon winked at the giggling boy.

“That’s mean,” he said, though there was still that huge grin plastered on his freckled features.

The older male hummed. “Well, let’s see,” he still had his Padawan in his arms, but now he stepped back to examine their work. “What do you say?”

“I say, we did a very good job.” It did not matter that their Christmas tree was more chaos than anything else. It glowed, it glittered, there were Christmas balls and bells and other things. In short, it was their tree and that was all that counted.

“Indeed,” he rested his chin on ginger locks, his midnight blue eyes roaming over the colorful plant. And without noticing it, Qui-Gon Jinn had finally found his Christmas Spirit.


	20. Wrapping

As a Jedi Master he should probably be happy that his Padawan had so many good and loyal friends, especially since he and his Padawan were more out in the galaxy than in the temple, but at times like these...

A sigh escaped the long haired male, he was sick of seeing gift wrap.

“Don’t worry Master,” Obi-Wan sounded apologetic, “we are almost finished.” He had just finished wrapping up a pair of gloves for one of his friends and was already reaching for the self-made cookies, he had planned to give to Reeft.

“I certainly hope so,” wrapping gifts, was truly not one of his talents, decided the long haired Jedi Master. He tiredly pushed the long brown strands away and was silently delighted at the small jingling sound he produced.

“After we wrapped YOUR gifts,” added the ginger haired Padawan. Qui-Gon froze, then blinked. “You DID get gifts for your friends… didn’t you?” Obi-Wan asked worried.

A groan escaped the older male and he hid his face in his hands.

“Master! You didn’t get anyone any presents?” he sounded truly shocked and almost scared.

“It slipped my mind, alright?” this was not the complete truth, he HAD remembered getting a present for his Padawan, but other than that…

“What are we waiting for then?” The Padawan had already jumped to his feet, his own presents all but forgotten and he had taken the older man’s hand and pulled him up as well. At least he tried that is. “We could go to the Christmas market… I am sure that Master Yoda would be happy about a glass of some strange delicacy and I think I remember Master Tahl saying something about a new bag…” he went on and on, even while pulling on his boots and his robe.

Qui-Gon was meanwhile torn between annoyance at having forgotten the gifts and amusement at his Padawan’s eagerness to help him. “Calm down, Obi-Wan,” he laughed. “Patience is a virtue, you know.”  
“That may be so, Master mine, but not if your teacher has forgotten something as important as this,” came the sassy reply.

The long haired Jedi Master decided that it was better not to argue any further, he would not win this one anyway, instead he allowed his Padawan to slip a small hand into his own and together they hurried out of the temple.


	21. Market

Qui-Gon had never been so glad, to be as tall and imposing as he was. He had almost no problems making his way through the crowd. His Padawan however, small and shy as he was, had more trouble and the long haired Jedi Master was actually afraid to lose him in the masses of people.

The solution to their slight problem, had been easy and therefore was Obi-Wan now sitting on his Master’s shoulders. Obi-Wan would certainly not complain, after all he finally could see everything and there would be no more people running into him. Also, it was comfortable on the tall man’s shoulders.

“Alright up there?” asked the Jedi Master.

Obi-Wan hummed in reply, rearranging the scarf he had gotten from his Master, around his neck. “Where should we start?” he questioned.

“Let’s just follow our noses.”

Obi-Wan barely kept himself from making a comment about ‘crooked noses’, he was pretty sure that his teacher would have thrown him off his shoulders had he spoken out aloud, and looked around.

“I think we should start left,” he said, sure of himself and his instincts.

“Alright, left it is,” he made a sharp turn, which earned him a small yelp from his Padawan. Thankfully did his beard hide most of his smile.

“Master, if you want to get rid of me, just put me down again. But then you have to get the presents yourself.”

A groan escaped the older male. “No, thank you.”

 

Qui-Gon had feared that it would be quite a stressful and terrible experience to go on the Christmas market this close to Christmas, and he had been right. Obi-Wan had made it somehow bearable, strangely, the boy had always a funny or sarcastic remark ready. Further did his ‘son’, as the market stall owners called him, get a lot of free things, mostly food. And food is ALWAYS a good way to lift the spirit.

“I think we should do this more often,” said Obi-Wan, while he was happily chewing on a biscuit

“But not so close before Christmas,” Qui-Gon shuddered at the thought. He was just glad that they had somehow managed to get everything they needed. Also, his shoulders were getting a little stiff. His student may be a light weight, something they were working on, but hours of walking had taken their toll.

“A hot shower would be nice now,” mumbled the ginger haired Jedi in training, the cold was getting to him.

“I’d prefer a hot bath actually,” it would at least help his poor muscles relax after carrying a young Padawan around for hours.

“But then I will go first, you always take HOURS and you always use all the hot water,” complained the younger male.

“Or you set up the dividers. We’d both have our privacy then.”

“We have dividers?”

Qui-Gon snorted. “Of course we have, who do you think I am?”  
“My Master I guess,” he deadpanned.

“I am prepared in case an over eager Padawan decides to enter the bathroom without knocking and waiting first.”

Obi-Wan was glad the older male could not see his flush, but he suspected that the long haired man knew it anyway. “That was ONE time,” it had been anything but pleasant. The horror as he had walked in on his Master showering. It was an experience he never wanted to have again. Jedi were actually supposed not to be so modest, everybody was the same and it did not matter what you looked like and such things. But still, there were still a couple of boundaries. It had not helped that his Master had found it quite hilarious and apparently had no shame.

“Yes, and we want to keep it that way, won’t we?” he was laughing heartily at his student’s embarrassment. There had been a time, when he too would have been horrified by the mere thought, but he had learned to cope with it. You had to, at least if you wanted to train Padawans.

“Shut up,” he hid his face in his hands and the deep laughter rang even louder.

A pleased smile appeared on Qui-Gon’s features. Apparently he would have the fresher all for himself after all.


	22. Elves

For the briefest of moments, Qui-Gon thought that Master Yoda had somehow found a way to infiltrate his and Obi-Wan’s apartment, but on the second glance, he was glad to discover that that was not the case.

“Obi-Wan? Is that you, Padawan?” asked the long haired Jedi Master.

“Why yes, Master,” now that the boy had turned around, Qui-Gon could actually see the all too familiar blue-green eyes and the countless freckles on his features.

Midnight blue eyes blinked. “What are you wearing and… why?” he eventually managed to spit out.

The boy, whose ginger hair was mostly hidden under a green and red striped pointy hat with a tourie at the end, flushed a light shade of red. “Bant bullied me into this,” he said in his defense.

Now, Qui-Gon found it hard to believe that sweet little Bant was even able to ‘bully’ anyone into anything, but he decided to let the matter drop for now. “And what exactly has she bullied you into?” he raised an eyebrow, while his eyes roamed over the costume. Obi-Wan was wearing a dark green jacket, with red trousers and white-red striped socks. He looked a little like a clown, just more fancy.

“The children in the crèche will get sweets today and the Masters were looking for Padawans, who would play Christmas Elves this year… Bant desperately wanted to join, but she did not want to do it alone,” he shrugged.

Leave it to his Padawan, to sacrifice himself for another’s dream and wish. “I see,” now the costume made sense. And only now did he notice the fake pointy ears, as well as the bells that were sewed onto the costume. “Who made the costume?”

“Master Tahl, she is really talented, don’t you think?” Obi-Wan grinned up at him.

“Indeed,” he was truly impressed, especially since he had not known that his friend could do such things.

A knock at the door interrupted their little chat. “Obi-Wan? Are you ready yet?” called a familiar female voice.

“Yes Bant, I’m coming,” he called right back. “I’ve got to go,” he said to his amused Master. Without waiting for an answer, he jumped forward, wrapping his arms around the taller male’s middle and squeezing tightly. He pulled back again, grinned and was gone out of the door the next moment.

Qui-Gon hummed to himself and pushed a few strands of chestnut brown hair out of his face. He wondered if Tahl was free this fine evening and wanted to do something, after all their Padawan’s would be busy….


	23. Family

Jedi did not remember their origins, because they were brought to the temple at a very young age. Rare were the occasions, when someone DID remember the planet he had previously lived on, or even the parents he once possessed. As a Jedi, those ties needed to be severed. Attachments were not allowed. The only family a Jedi needed, were other Jedi.

The more important it was to protect those, who were close to you, closer than the main part of the Jedi.

Jedi would die for one another, but never to the extent of a mission. The mission always came first, that was law.

 

“Master, you are daydreaming again.”

Qui-Gon blinked his eyes and found himself looking at a wooden cutting board and with a sharp knife in his right hand. He furrowed his brow. He was absolutely certain that he had been cutting meat.

The ginger haired Padawan next to him, chuckled. And a quick glance his way, told Qui-Gon, where his work had left. His Padawan was happily cutting the ingredients, not bothering that this had been his teacher’s task.

“Really Master, you should stay in the here and now, where your focus belongs,” another chuckle followed the statement and despite all, the older Jedi had to smile. His own words thrown back at him, how fitting.

“Forgive me Padawan, my mind seems to be drifting as of late,” he quickly apologized, while putting away the dirty knife he was holding. How embarrassing, especially in front of his Padawan.

“Don’t worry Master, I will keep it a secret,” he winked and turned back to the preparations of the dinner they would have tomorrow.

It was apparently Qui-Gon’s turn to make Christmas dinner, which could very well be, because he had skipped on the last few Christmas festivities. Sometimes his friends were real bullies.

 

Obi-Wan started to hum a happy tune and was otherwise engrossed in his mundane task. He seemed to be enjoying cooking together with his Master, more or less together at least.

Obi-Wan was his family, decided Qui-Gon then and there. Though he wondered what he would those, should he ever stand before the decision of choosing between his Padawan and the mission? As a Jedi, he would be supposed to choose the mission, that much was clear. But as a Master… those, who had never trained a young child before, could not understand the conflict. There was attachment between a Master and a Padawan, how else could it be? After all you spent most of the time together, you trained the child, you formed him or her and not to forget the times, when you would sit at your sick and wounded Padawan’s bedside, worrying if he or she would be alright again.

He shook his head. He never wanted to stand before this decision, it would destroy him. Obi-Wan would probably tell him to save the mission, but the prize would be high, perhaps too high…

 

“Master?” Obi-Wan’s worried voice was able to break through the dark thoughts. Only now did the long haired male notice that his middle was tightly hugged by a certain ginger haired brat. There were tears in blue-green eyes.

Qui-Gon closed his eyes. His thoughts must have leaked. He tightly wrapped his arms around the boy, physically shielding him. These were hardly thoughts for a time like this.

“Stay in the present, Padawan mine. Do not fret over a future that might not even come to pass, enjoy the moment instead,” his words were admonitory and Qui-Gon was honestly not sure, if he was really talking to Obi-Wan, or more to himself.

“Yes Master,” answered the ginger haired Jedi in training dutifully. He hesitantly pulled back and wore his most charming smile, or at least he tried his best. “Will you help me now, or do I have to do everything by myself?”

His smile was mostly hidden behind his beard. He was glad for the quick change of topics. “Yes Padawan, let’s see…”


	24. Dinner

It was loud and lively, decided Qui-Gon Jinn, but he would not have it any other way. THIS was, what Christmas was truly about, spending time with your loved ones, not the presents, even though they WERE a welcome tradition.

“Can you pass me the sauce, please?” asked Tahl aloud and not a moment later, did Yan reach for the bowl, to give it to Mace, who in turn gave it the honey skinned female. “Thank you. Bant, do you want some too?”

“Yes please,” the Mon Calamari smiled at her teacher.

Qui-Gon was silently enjoying the meal. He was beyond happy that his Master had arrived the previous day, just in time for him to be properly invited to come to his and Obi-Wan’s rooms. Needless to say, the ginger haired Padawan had been beyond delighted to be able to meet his Grandmaster and to thank him properly for the comfortable and warm sweater that he was wearing today.

“So Master,” Qui-Gon turned towards his former Master, “you still have not told me, how your latest mission was.”

Yoda, who was sitting across from Obi-Wan, was alert as well. He had even stopped levitating things onto his Great-Grandpadawan’s plate. Qui-Gon felt a little sorry for Obi-Wan, after all he was ‘forced’ to eat much more than he usual did.

“It went well, it just took much longer for the two fractions to settle down, that is all,” the older male answered honestly.

“What was the conflict about?” asked Obi-Wan.

“The usual,” replied Yan, but as he saw the confusion appear on young freckled features, did he quickly add, “power, money and wealth, my very young boy.”

“Talk about this, we should not. Enjoy the feast, we should,” Yoda cut in.

“Indeed, my Master.”

“Now Qui-Gon, you have yet to tell Mace and me, if you agree,” Tahl was widely smirking and almost immediately, Qui-Gon felt all eyes on him.

“Tahl,” he said in a warning tone. This was about Mace’s and Tahl’s idea to put him into a Santa Clause costume so that the children could have their fun while getting their presents.

“What are you talking about, Master?” asked the female Mon Calamari.

“Oh, don’t worry about that, my dear.”

“This is a topic between the adults,” said Mace Windu. Qui-Gon shot him a glare too. “Well?”

“Fine, I’ll do it… if you stop nagging me,” the bearded man with the long chestnut brown hair replied eventually.

“Good,” Tahl clapped her hands and resumed eating, while the tall male pouted.

“Of course you will all stay here the night,” said Mace, while looking into the crowd. It was a pity that his own former Padawan, had not been able to attend. She had fallen ill, but she had not wanted for her Master to miss the event. He would visit her later however, that much was clear.

“Master Yoda can take my bed,” offered Obi-Wan.

“Grateful, I am,” said the green troll. It was no secret that he and Obi-Wan shared a special bond, so it was no wonder that they were smiling at each other.

“Master, you can take my bed,” said Qui-Gon. Dooku inclined his head, he would not speak with his mouth full.

“A good thing that Bant and I brought an air mattress,” Tahl said.

“We’ll share,” piped in the Mon Calamari.

“I will return to Depa, the Force knows she needs me, but I will come back around midday,” promised Made. He regretted not being able to spent time with the rest, it was part of their tradition.

“I guess that leaves the couch to us, Padawan mine,” Qui-Gon said while glancing at Obi-Wan. The boy nodded eagerly. It would not be the first night they spent on the couch, sleeping together and it would certainly not be the last. Qui-Gon was just glad that his Padawan was still so small, otherwise he actually would need to get a new couch, a bigger one.

“That’s settled then,” concluded Yan, before he reached out to light the fourth candle again. It had been blown out during the commotion of setting the table.

This was certainly the best Christmas Qui-Gon had ever had in his whole life.


	25. Presents

“Where in the Force’s name is Mace?” growled Qui-Gon.

“Where in the Force’s name has your ‘famous’ patience and serenity gone to?” countered Tahl. She was looking him up and down, searching for any mistakes in his attire. She found none. “I have to say, you can pull that look off.”

The long haired man, whose previously chestnut brown hair was now snow-white, shot her a dirty look. He looked ridiculous as Santa Clause and nobody could change his opinion. Red was not his color and he dreaded the day his hair would really turn white.

“Where is Mace?” he repeated his question.

“He is probably bringing Depa with him, you know she is ill. Give them some time.” In confusion did she watch, how her friend began to pace. “You could start without him, you know,” she raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms over her chest.

“Actually no, I can’t,” he sighed and barely stopped himself with running his gloved hand through his beard. “He got Obi-Wan’s present,” he explained.

“Oh,” the honey skilled female awkwardly cleared her throat. “I see… I could make Yoda dress as a Christmas Elf to play out some time.”

“Please?” he let himself drop onto his mattress, having changed into the costume in his bedroom. Things were not going as planned, then again, they rarely did.

“I’ll go talk to him,” silently, Tahl slid out of the room and truly, a couple of minutes later, she returned with the Jedi Order’s Grandmaster in tow. He looked quite amused.

“Good you look,” he pointed towards Qui-Gon.

Despite his impatience, the long haired man had to chuckle, “Wiser, no doubt.”

Yoda hummed and quickly changed as well. In the end he looked more like a small goblin than a Christmas Elf, but children were easy to please. Besides, it was the thought that counted.

“Now, you two look absolutely lovely,” Tahl cooed and Qui-Gon wanted to retort something, when the door to his bedroom was violently opened, revealing a panting Mace.

“I am here, I am here. And I brought this,” the package he was holding, had holes and was moving. Tahl was not sure what to think of it.

“What took you so long?” he jumped from his position on the bed.

“I brought Depa with me,” Mace explained, confirming what Tahl had thought. “You look good, Master,” he added towards Yoda, who inclined his head.

Qui-Gon sighed and took the shivering box out of the Korun Master’s hands, carefully placing it on the ground. “Thank you, Mace.”

“Anytime,” he and Tahl vanished.

“Now, my loyal Christmas elf,” it was in moments like these, that Qui-Gon was thankful that his voice was already so deep, “would you mind, holding this?” he pointed towards the present on the ground.

Yoda was eyeing it curiously. “Plan to make a zoo out of the temple, are you?” he picked it up nevertheless.

“Something like that,” he shouldered Santa Clause’s red sack, which was heavier than it looked and nodded towards Yoda.

 

Qui-Gon was only a little bit surprised to see his living room so filled with people. Obi-Wan and Bant were not the only Padawans there, in fact, all their friends with their Masters, were present. His performance as Santa Clause, must have made the round. Midnight blue eyes locked with unimpressed gold-green striped ones and Tahl just smiled innocently. It certainly explained the weight of Santa Clause’s red sack.

“Ho ho ho, merry Christmas,” it was hard to say, who was more delighted by his appearance, the Padawans, or the adults. But Qui-Gon had more eyes for the ginger haired boy, who was sitting next to Bant, with Quinlan on the backrest behind him and with Garen halfway draped over his lap. He looked happy and highly amused.

 

Obi-Wan was the last to receive his present, not that he seemed to mind. He was just as excited with what his friends and Masters were getting. But when his turn finally came, he WAS a little nervous wreck. Qui-Gon thought it was cute.

“Well, who do we have here?” he said in his fake Santa voice. “Young Obi-Wan Kenobi. Your Master told me that you have indeed been a good boy,” in delight did he watch, how freckled cheeks flushed in embarrassment. “That’s why I’ve got a special present for you.”

This was Yoda’s cue, who had held onto the trembling present until now. Obi-Wan took it, slightly flinching as he noticed that his present was moving and seemed to be alive. His gaze turned from worried to pleased.

Qui-Gon, who had kneeled down to be more on eye-level with the children, was startled, when Obi-Wan moved forward, whispering, “Thank you, Master,” right into his ear, before pecking his cheek.

“Open it already, Kenobi,” that was Quinlan Vos.

Obi-Wan rolled his eyes, sent another shy smile towards his disguised Master, who was still surprised by the open affection in public, and went to his friends to reveal the small Kiros bird that peeked out of its box, as soon as the lit was opened.

Now Qui-Gon was hardly a friend of gifting animals, especially not during such festivities as Christmas, but he had saved the bird a couple of days ago and it needed someone to take care of it. The bird had never seen freedom, it was raised in a cage and would never be able to survive on its own and he knew for a fact that Obi-Wan would take good care of it.

In awe and with extreme care, did Obi-Wan reach into the box to pick up the small bird that had yet to reach its full height. The intelligent bird – they were capable of understanding speech – immediately felt that it was safe with the Padawan and it friendly nibbled on the end of the braid, causing the small bell there to jingle.

“Hello there,” Obi-Wan greeted his newest friend. The smile he sent Qui-Gon’s way was answer enough.

“Great responsibility, this is,” commented Yoda quietly.

“Yes,” agreed Qui-Gon. “But I know he is ready.” There had been a time, once, when having an animal was part of the Jedi training. Young Padawans learned responsibility and depending on the animal, even death. It was usually the Master, who did the choosing of the creature, but sometimes the Force interfered.

 “Ready, he is,” agreed Yoda, who was watching the children, who were standing around Obi-Wan wanting to see the animal, with a fond look. It became even fonder, when Obi-Wan allowed Bant to hold his pet.

 

 

Even though it had been beautiful and happy and all that, Qui-Gon was grateful that Christmas was finally over and that he could FINALLY get out of his costume again, it was beginning to itch.

His Padawan was tired too, but he had yet to change into his sleeping attire. Instead, he carried the small bird, who could not fly since its wing was still healing, towards his room. He had created a small space for the bird to rest. A few things were still missing, branches for him to land and climb on, a few toys, more than one feeding ground and so on and so forth. For now, the bird had one of Obi-Wan’s old pillows to sleep on, a good substitute for a warm nest, with a bowl of water and a bowl with grain feed.

Qui-Gon followed quietly and watched how his student refilled the water bowl, setting it on a towel in case the bird decided to take a bath and gently petted his pet’s head. The bird leaned into the touch.

“Good night Cralen,” he said.

“Cralen?” Qui-Gon had not meant to speak out loud. Obi-Wan had felt him anyway. “Does it mean anything?”

“No,” there was a smile on Obi-Wan’s features. “It just sounds pretty.”

“Of course,” Qui-Gon let out an amused huff and turned his gaze towards the carpet that needed to be cleaned again. He would have to request the cleaning droids. He could feel Obi-Wan’s eyes on him. “Just say it, Padawan.”

“You look old,” said the accented voice.

“You don’t like it? Tahl said it suited me,” mocked the older male, causing his student to grimace. The bird chirped joyfully.

“No… not really,” he had stepped closer to the long haired man and was delighted, when his teacher followed the unspoken question for a hug. “Thank you Master,” he said.

“Thank YOU, Obi-Wan.” The Padawan knew that his teacher meant much more than the self-made leather wristband his Padawan had gifted him. On the inside of the wristband, was even an engraved message that Qui-Gon had yet to decode and Obi-Wan would not tell him.

The numbers, “6  1  20  8  5  18” were engraved in the inside, but Obi-Wan had PROMISED that they meant something. Qui-Gon was hardly someone to shrink from a challenge, quite the opposite actually, but he would solve this puzzle another day.

“Sleep well,” he finally said to his yawning student and sent him off, fully intending to take a shower to get rid of the white dye in his hair, before he went to bed too. And tomorrow, he would clean up his apartment… and probably help Obi-Wan to redecorate his room. And who knew, he might even get to decode his message. But all that, had time until tomorrow…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am curios if there is anyone out there, who can crack the code... ^^  
> Write it in the comments, if you have an idea. 
> 
> Also, I would like to say thank you to all the readers and those, who have commented on a daily basis. This project had been both a joy, as well as very stressful sometimes. I would not miss the experience however. Just know that your comments gave me the incentive to go on, so... THANK YOU!

**Author's Note:**

> Don't forget to leave a comment behind.
> 
> More Star Wars stuff can be found on my Tumblr blog:  
> inkognito97.tumblr.com


End file.
